2017 Brovia, Barolo, Rocche di Castiglione

2017 was a warm, dry vintage that needed a masterful hand at the helm. An unholy chain of events—early budbreak caused by an unusually warm March, followed by frost in April—severely challenged vines. In vintages like 2017, it’s the older vines that thrive. Brovia’s old vine 2017s, from their Castiglione Falleto estate, are just beginning to reveal themselves—and they’re lovely indeed.

It’s marvelous how sometimes life’s challenges end up yielding nice things. The 2017s aren’t hot, and they’re decidedly lighter than most 2016s. Many winemakers opted for a delicate hand: less extraction, and less time aging in botti. Brovia left fruit on the vine to impart a freshness to their wines. As such, the 2017s are painted in delicate strokes, and reveal beguiling noses that stop you in your tracks with enough air.

The fabled Rocche di Castiglione vineyard, planted in 1966, is among the most delicate of all Barolo’s vineyards. With air, the Rocche di Castiglione reveals a wild strawberry finish, with a warm clay, menthol, rose, and Ceylon tea sort of earthiness.